Conversion inference for ETBE reactive distillations

Reactive distillation (RD) integrates reaction and separation into a single process, resulting in dual process objectives: maximization of reactant co nversion and product purity. Both the objectives, which are generally incon sistent, must be carefully considered in RD operation. Unfortunately, neith er the conversion nor the purity are economically and reliably available. T his work showed that the conversion could be inferred from multiple tempera tures. A third-order two-variable nonlinear inferential model was recommend ed for synthesis of ethyl tert-butyl ether (ETBE) with a 10-stage RD column . The temperatures of the bottom reactive section and the reboiler were emp loyed in the model. The experimental design, model identification and model test were investigated as well. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.